Thursday, April 4, 2013

Paris, France

As I had booked my flight to Europe through my frequent flier program, I did not have the most desirable flight options to choose from. When I attempted to reserve my return flight from Prague back to Seattle, they had no flights available out of Prague. Instead, I decided to book my return flight out of Paris as they had a direct one available to Seattle. However, this required having to get from Prague to Paris. As a result, I ended up booking a cheap flight on Sky Europe Airlines from Prague to Paris.

After arriving at the airport in Paris, I took a train into the central part of Paris, where I had to transfer a few times until I reached the Ecole Militaire metro stop. From here, Hotel Royal Pharewas literally right across the street from me. The room was very basic and tiny, but fit my requirements of a decent sized bed with a bathroom and shower. The best part of the room was the view of the Eiffel Tower from my window.

Hotel Royal Phare is located in my favorite neighborhood of Paris called Rue Cler. I have stayed in this part of the city on a prior trip, but at a more expensive hotel called Hotel Muguet, which I highly recommend if you are not on a tight budget.

Hotel Royal Phare.

View of the Eiffel Tower from Hotel Royal Phare.

Night view of the Eiffel Tower from Hotel Royal Phare.

My first mission of the day was to obtain a croissant at my favorite boulangerie and also to buy a breakfast crepe at the creperie. The croissant was heavenly and as I had remembered; the texture was flaky and dense, but also soft, and the flavor was rich and buttery, exactly how all croissants should taste. At the crepe stand, I ordered a crepe with eggs, Swiss cheese, and ham. After devouring all of my food, I was stuffed and uncomfortably full.

Crepe cart in Paris.

Delicious tarts for sale in Paris.

As I had already visited Paris for a full week on a prior trip, I had seen most of the major sights so I just had a few things planned for the day.

First I headed to Musee d l’Orangerie. I was unable to tour this museum on my first visit to Paris two years prior because it was undergoing a complete renovation. The Musee d l’Orangerie houses Claude Monet's famous water lilies, which were displayed in massive oval-shaped rooms, exactly as Monet had intended his paintings to be viewed. The gorgeous scenes were painted at the gardens of Giverny, which are located about one hour from Paris. Aside from Monet's paintings, there were also several dozen Impressionist paintings displayed on the second level below the oval rooms.

Exterior of Musee d l'Orangerie.

Musee d l'Orangerie

Musee d l'Orangerie

Musee d l'Orangerie

Musee d l'Orangerie

Musee d l'Orangerie

Musee d l'Orangerie

Musee d l'Orangerie

Musee d l'Orangerie

Musee d l'Orangerie

Musee d l'Orangerie

Musee d l'Orangerie

Musee d l'Orangerie

After visiting the museum, I went to Palais de Chaillot to view the Eiffel Tower from a distance. I had never viewed the tower from this angle or perspective and it was quite different than from up-close in the Parc du Champs, which was on the other side of the Seine River.

Eiffel Tower as viewed from Palais de Chaillot.

Eiffel Tower as viewed from Palais de Chaillot.

Eiffel Tower as viewed from Palais de Chaillot.

Eiffel Tower as viewed from Palais de Chaillot.

Palais de Chaillot

Eiffel Tower as viewed from Palais de Chaillot.

Next, I planned to take the Metro to the Jardin du Luxembourg,however, because the park was so far away in comparison to where Rue Cler was located, by the time I arrived it was dark out and the gates to the park were closed. Feeling very frustrated and irritated, I decided to head back to Rue Cler and find a place for dinner.

I decided on a favorite restaurant of mine called Café du Marche. It's located in the Rue Cler neighborhood and is frequented by locals due to the decently priced menu options it offers. I ordered the chicken dish that came with mashed potatoes. The chicken and its accompanied sauce were absolutely incredible; the French really have perfected the art of making amazing sauces. For dessert, I chose the profiteroles (pastry stuffed with vanilla ice cream and pastry cream and topped with chocolate sauce). My profiteroles were utterly delicious and I made sure to slowly savor every single bite.

Afterward, I walked back to my hotel, feeling stuffed but very happy for being able to experience a day in my favorite city of the world: Paris. Although I had not been able to see as much of the city as I had hoped for, I was not too upset as I knew I would be back again one year later in September 2009 during my month-long trip to France.

To try and provide a brief summary of my 3.5 week trip to Eastern and Central Europe is quite difficult, however, it was an incredible and an amazing trip that I will never forget. Things that stand out for me the most are the beautiful town of Prague with its horrid crowds, the ridiculously cheap food found in Krakow, the devastating but moving experience at Auschwitz, the solitude I felt in Eger as I was the only English-speaking tourist I encountered, the vibrancy and energy of Budapest, the natural and astounding beauty I found in Slovenia, the efficiency of Vienna, the incredibly quaint town of Cesky Krumlov, and my visit to Paris, which was comfortable, relaxing, and very familiar. Having the opportunity to visit so many countries that were once formally part of the Communist regime provided a huge learning experience for me. I was able to see first-hand that long gone are the days of the dreary and gray Communist cities; these places are now full of life and much has been done to clean up their cities, all of which are beautiful in their own unique ways. The architecture varies vastly from country to country and sometimes even from town to town. I also learned that there really is no language barrier in this part of the world. Prior to my trip, I was concerned that I would have difficulty interacting with the native speakers in each country. However, I quickly realized that people in Eastern European countries, especially Poland, speak English so much better than those in the Western European countries. You are so much more likely to encounter an employee at a train station in Hungary who speaks English, versus one in Italy or France who may speak none. In addition to the ease of traveling in these countries, another added benefit is the fact that most of the countries are still using their own currency which allows for a more cost-efficient trip than what you would pay for one of a similar time frame in Western Europe. All in all, I can whole-heartily recommend a visit to any one of the countries I experienced and I know that I will someday return to each of the places and also make sure to add new cities and regions to my list.

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About Me

I am an avid traveler, amateur photographer, and self-proclaimed foodie whose biggest passion in life involves discovering new places, people, and food. Long ago, I decided to make travel the most important priority in my life.
Traveling has altered my life in more ways than I will ever be able to describe. One of the biggest and most important things traveling has done to me is immensely change the way I measure quality of life. Travel has also broadened my perspectives and helped me realize that not everyone has the so-called “American Dream” and that having less things in life can actually make you a happier and more fulfilled human being. Through my travels I have gained a huge appreciation for cultural, political, and religious differences and diversity.
This blog will allow me to document all of my amazing travels, life-changing experiences, delicious food, and the interesting interactions I encounter as I travel through this very beautiful and diverse world.